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6wt 11ft or so switch

10K views 17 replies 14 participants last post by  Merle  
#1 ·
who has what 6wt 11ft or so switch and how do you rate it? It seems only a few major brands make a 6wt switch, the 11ft 6wt is what im after and will fill a gap in my rod range that doesnt need a full length spey rod but an 11ft switch would be perfect. So lets here what 6wt switchers you have and what set up you use with it.↲Cheers.↲Nic
 
#2 ·
one that i have fished a bunch and really like is the Scott A31106. good price point and great performance. nice and light (5.9oz), medium action with a light tip. hardware is workmanlike but sturdy, definitely no frills kind of finish but a solid performer.

a bit of a bend profile shot for you
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handles fish up to about 10 lbs and for average GL steelhead it's fun but a touch light once in a while.

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#3 ·
6wt Switch Rods

I have cast Orvis Helios 6wt 11' switch, Sage Z Axis 6wt 11' switch and TFO Deer Creek 6wt 11' switch. They all deliver a hell of a lot of line using a two handed casting stroke overhead. A hell of a lot of line. The Orvis and Sage seem to be rated much closer to single handed line rate weighting and the TFO closer to a two handed rating. To load the Orvis and Sage I could use an Airflo 40+ in 6wt but perferred a 7wt and the TFO could use an 8wt but I preferred the 9wt. My limited two handed casting skills can be used with all three and ample line can be cast when overhead casting/limited backcast room is available. I finally settled on all three...just in different weights to cover lots of fishing situations.
 
#8 ·
I know its not quite 11', but I use the Echo SR#6 loaded with either a 21g or 23g compact scandi head. I use it on my local stream for sea trout (sea run browns) and I have used it for Salmon as well.

Oops may have dropped a clanger here guys ....
.... did you mean 2hand #6 or 1hand #6?
 
#9 ·
i have thought about another echo as i have the 4wt sr, just thought i would see what else is out there for decent money, at 10'10" its still an acceptable length, i just wish rio would make a skagit flight short head, i could prob still get away with a 375gr or so flight head though.
 
#10 ·
Hi OZ - yes I'd gathered by your previous threads that you'd got an SR#4. The #6'er is slightly stiffer, not to much just a tad. A mate of mine uses the RIO 325gr Skagit Short on the SR#6 - not to do real skagit stuff, he u-hand/switches most of the time - he just likes the profile for coastal fishing.

As mentioned earlier I use the 21g or 23g compact scandi's with a 10' poly leader plus tippet up front. When I'm on the coast after sea trout I normally walk/wade along the shoreline "switching" as I go, however its a challenge setting the anchor if theres much of a wave - I try to place it along a trough that seems to work ok; but its quite hard doing it consistently.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Batson / Rainshadow

Hey Oz - I built one of the Rainshadow 6wt (10' 8") switches a couple of years ago. Love the rod, feels like a feather in hand after months of swinging a regular spey rod. The line I like the best on this rod is a 335 grain Elixir, but also had good luck using an 8wt Rio Outbound (despite the taper being "backwards" for spey casting).

I've yet to take a steelhead on this rod, but it's going to be a hell of a ride when it happens. I have gotten some nice trout and SRC on it and it was pretty sweet.

I sometimes wish I'd built the 7 wt instead, because my next rod "up" in my quiver is a Decho 6126 - way more rod than the Rainshadow, leaving me a bit of a gap between the switch rod and my smallest spey. I guess that means I need to build another rod soon ;>)

PS - when I built this rod I posted some pics of the handle I built for it: http://www.speypages.com/speyclave/showthread.php?t=27928
 
#14 ·
Even though we're talking 6wt's here one other I strongly

recommend is the ACR 11'9" FIVE weight. This has been my 'go to' low water summer run rod here on the Rogue for a couple of years. A total sweetheart that will be getting a run for its money when my new Meiser 3/4/5 gets here in a few weeks.
Fred
 
#16 ·
think ill stick to a 6wt, i have a 4wt switch which handles the smaller side of things perfectly, and iv still landed big fish on it upto 18lb so im not to phased by potentially hooking a bigger trout on it, would like the 6 just for those days when you wish you had a bit more punch but dont want to use an 8wt 2hander at 13'3", is the rainshadow sh rated or dh rated? Sounds very light by all accounts.